Hey,I met my Canadian girlfriend here in New Zealand in January and we are in a committed relationship. She is here on a working holiday here though and must return to Canada in November. I'm thinking about doing a working holiday in Canada next year in April so i can be with her, and to be honest I'm not really wanting to return to NZ. We are thinking of doing the sponsorship thing to get me permanent residency in Canada (she cant move to NZ as she has family in Canada). We have read up and she is eligible to sponsor me, and i have no convictions and I'm pretty sure im eligible now to be under the conjugal partner status (we cant live together at because of the immigration barrier) , but after my year of working holiday i think i might be able to fall under the common law status as ill be living with her for a year by the end of it and will have been together for 2 years by that stage.The question is, can I apply for permenent residency in canada while im over there on the working holiday, or do i have to leave the country first? Or, would it be better for me to apply before i go there in april ( which by then we would have been in a relationship for 1 yearthanks for any advice!!Aaron

1st of all, I'm nowhere near an expert, but I was in a similar situation. Here's my two cents:

Conjugal sponsorship is a lot harder to prove than common-law, and yet you have to be able to prove, as common-law, that you do indeed have a marriage-like relationship. Read the requirements, and make sure you can provide as much proof as possible. If you start collecting evidence now, and prepare for the application, you might have a strong enough case that there's no problem for you to apply after the year in Canada is over.

Now, I went to Canada through a Working Holiday myself. We researched and realized I could have indeed stayed in Canada after my WH visa expired, provided that I had already sent my application for an Inland PR process. I would have stayed in what is called "implied status" until the first stage of PR, sponsor approval, was completed (aprox. a year). The disadvantage of this is that I would have had no medical insurance, and could not have worked nor studied for that whole year. Besides, being from a country that requires a visa to go to Canada, I could not have left the country for the 2 years that the process takes. This would be the case for you as well, unless NZ is visa exempt-- in which case you still cannot work, study, or get medical insurance.

Take this time to start getting all your documents together, Conjugal wouldn't work for you there really are no barriers in your case, your from a visa exempt Country 6 month visit for her there and 6 month visit for you here and thats a year to apply common-law doesn't matter where you live just that you have lived together a year. Conjugal is hard to prove and only 1% to 2% even get approved. Once you have the year as common-law you send in the application. If you are here on a WHV then send it in about a month before your WHV expires also at this time apply to switch you status from the WHV to visitor status tell them you have applied for PR and wish to stay in Canada during the process and ask for a year extension. applying out-land is faster and does not mean you need to be out of Canada to do so. Sydney which would be your VO is runnin about 8 months and 3 months for the sponsorship approval so 11 months you should have PR. thing is during that time you will not be able to work. so while you are on a WHV save what you can.

Sydney is also a very fast VO, some files get done in less than the time on the website, so hopefully you will be done faster than that. Outland makes much more sense if you are from a visa-exempt country, and with a fast VO. Good luck,Sweden

Something else to think about... When you get to Canada on your WH you will have an open work permit meaning you can work for whoever you want but only for the duration of your WH which is one year. If you can find an employer who is willing to sponsor you for a work permit after your WH is over (and it is approved) you can still work and have health coverage while you wait for PR. It can be hard to find an employer which will sponsor you for a work permit so allow yourself a lot of time. It might also mean that you will need to do a job that you would not normally consider, but earning $10 an hour at a burger bar and keeping health care is better than sitting on your butt and living off your girlfriend.

This is exactly what I did. I came to Canada on a WH from NZ, met my boyfriend and applied for a WP with my employer. My WP was denied for continuing in my management job, but was able to get a new WP as a nanny and once all that got sorted out I applied for PR outland.

Check out the CIC website and this forum for requirements and start gathering as much documentation as you can. When you get to Canada get on the residential lease and utilities with your girlfriend and open a joint account together. Quality over quantity is the best way to go, and knowing in advance what you need will make the process a lot easier when its time to put your application together.

Hey,So I can apply out-land from inside Canada by sending the documentation to an overseas office such as Sydney??I was thinking would probably be quite difficult to find a place that will give me a working visa to stay in Canada after my working holiday, and that it would be easier for both of us to work in Korea as ESL teachers (I am one currently in NZ) and apply from there while earning/saving up cash. Then, once its approved head back to Canada to live.Is this possible or does my sponsor need to stay in Canada while they process everything?Thanks again!